Missing Scenes
by eiahmon
Summary: Scenes from my Kingdom Hearts fanfics that didn't make the cut for various reasons.
1. 1 Dead Flowers: Pregnancy Woes

**A/N: The original version of Dead Flowers was supposed to be much longer and much more detailed, but I realized that if I left it that way, the fic would end up novel length, so I cut a great deal out of it, most of which I didn't bother to save. Here is one tiny piece I did save, in case I opted to use it anyway.**

First it had been the cravings. Lumaria had been bewildered the first time he woke up in the middle of the night craving pickles with peanut butter, and he had been reluctant to bother the servants with something so strange, but they had simply nodded in understanding and gotten what he had asked for. Later it had been waffles with cheese, followed by (Thankfully normal.) fruit and salads and other fresh greens. His attendants assured him that such things were normal and that they were eventually go away.

The second thing had been the morning sickness. Lumaria lost track of the mornings he spend hunched over in bed, vomiting into a basin on his lap, while his nurse carefully held his hair back out of the way. Just the smell of eggs or pork was enough to make him sick again no matter what time of day, and things had only become worse when his bastard of a husband figured out that, by making retching sounds, he could make Lumaria even sicker. Though he'd gotten a nice bit of satisfaction when the physician, upon learning what the man was doing, ordered him to stay out of the room during the sickness bouts. The man hadn't been happy, but he couldn't do anything without making it appear as though he wasn't concerned about his wife's health.

Then there were the mood swings. One moment he would be fine, the next bawling like a babe, and then ready to tear into everyone and everything. Of course, considering what he was being forced to endure to keep the pregnancy going, severe and frequent crying really didn't surprise him, but damn, a sad scene in a book would have him crying his eyes out, while his nurse looked on with that knowing look on her face. He snapped at his attendants when they bathed him, snarled at his parents when they visited (That one really didn't surprise him either, seeing as they were the ones that allowed him to be put in such a state to begin with.), and sniped at his husband when the bastard spent time with him. Of course the last one usually got him slapped for insolence, which only caused him to cry again. Then there were the days when he spent lying in bed, staring listlessly at the ceiling, ignoring any and all attempts to get him interested in a book or conversation. The bouts of depression could also be blamed on his miserable situation, but the pregnancy didn't help them.

As the baby grew (And the morning sickness settled down, thankfully.) she began to move and kick, and she soon proved to be an active one. The physician assured Lumaria that the baby had periods where she would sleep, but she only seemed to sleep during the day. At night, when her mother was trying to sleep, she eagerly kicked and rolled and generally did whatever she could do to keep Lumaria awake. She especially loved waiting until he was about to drop off and then stomp hard on his bladder, bringing him back to full wakefulness instantly. It wouldn't have been so bad, except for the fact that he was not permitted to walk, and late at night, there was no one to carry him to his bathroom, which meant asking his nurse to get out the chamber pot. He hated using that thing.

He then had to contend with his changing shape and size. His belly grew round and large, and he was horrified one day to see that he was growing _breasts_. They were very small, but they were there, and the mere sight of them made him howl in terror until the physician was summoned. The man patiently explained to him that such a thing was expected, and that once the baby was born, he would be capable of nursing her if he wished. Lumaria's frantic head shaking had put an end to that idea quickly, upon which he was told that they would go away after the child was born and the hormones supporting the pregnancy were gone. Needless to say, he had been _very_ relieved to hear that.

As he neared the end of the pregnancy his back hurt, his ankles were swollen, his feet were always cold, he had trouble breathing due to the child pressing against his lungs, he continuously had to relieve himself, he couldn't get comfortable, and he just wanted it to be done, so his body would go back to normal.

Of course, the end of the pregnancy meant labor and delivery.

Ugh...


	2. The Price: Rejection: Nightmares

**A/N: This was intended to be in Rejection, but I somehow forgot to add it in. Rather that go back and edit it in, I decided just to put it here.**

Even was deep in his dreams when he heard a soft sound that did not belong. His dream self ignored it, but his conscious mind seized upon it, and a second later, when it was heard a second time, he positively identified it as a sob, a very soft one. Even tried to stay in the dream; his dream self was in the midst of a great scientific breakthrough, but the sob was heard a third time, and then a fourth. It was then that he realized who exactly was crying, and that knowledge began to wake him up.

He opened his eyes and sat up to find himself in his darkened bedroom, in the twin sized bed that he had been sleeping in, and a quick look at the larger bed showed Xehanort lying in the center of it, deep in the throes of some kind of nightmare. His body was tense, he had the blankets in a white knuckled grip, and his face was twisted with pain and wet with tears. A keening wail sounded in the room as Even threw the blankets back and got up.

He quickly walked the short distance between the beds as Xehanort's entire body jerked, and he arched his back and wailed as if in great pain as he spread his legs far apart. It didn't take much to figure out what he was dreaming of, and Even sat down beside him and reached out for him.

"Xehanort," he called as he gently shook him "Xehanort, wake up. You're having a nightmare." Xehanort flinched away at the touch and sobbed in terror as Even shook him again, harder this time. "Xehanort, it's alright. Xehanort, wake up."

Xehanort was startled awake, and he sat up in bed and looked around the room with wide, wild eyes for a moment before he looked at Even. The blond watched as the fear and terror slowly faded from Xehanort's brown eyes, to be replaced with recognition and relief. "Even?" Even nodded and smiled, and Xehanort burst into tears and threw himself into his arms.

"Were you dreaming about Braig again?" Even asked as he rocked Xehanort and stroked his hair. Xehanort nodded. "Do you wish to tell me about it?"

Xehanort shivered and didn't answer for a long moment, but then he began to speak in a quiet voice. "You left me alone in here, and Braig came in, and said that you had left me and no one was going to stop him from doing what he wanted to me. Then he pushed me down on the bed and he... r...r..." Xehanort struggled to say the word; for whatever reason, he just had a difficult time voicing it. "He hurt me, and you weren't there, and no one came, and... and." He dissolved into tears again and laid his head on Even's shoulder, and the Senior Apprentice held him and allowed him to cry himself out.

"I will never leave you, Xehanort." Even said quietly over the younger's cries "Braig will never hurt you again as long as I am here. Do you understand? I promise that I will keep you safe." He crooned soothingly to Xehanort for the next several minutes as the younger gradually quieted, and he smiled slightly when he realized that Xehanort had fallen asleep in his arms.

He carefully laid Xehanort down in the center of the bed and covered him with the quilt, but when he tried to stand up and go back to his own bed, he realized that Xehanort still had a hold of his pajama sleeve. He gently pried the younger's fingers off of the fabric, but then Xehanort whined and refused to let go of his hand.

He rolled his eyes. "Let go, Xehanort. I need to go back to bed." He tried to pull his hand away, but Xehanort whimpered and wouldn't relinquish his grip. He sighed. "The things I do for you." Stretching out, he grabbed the extra blanket from the foot of the bed and laid down on the quilt beside the younger apprentice. It was chilly in the castle, and he really wanted to be under the heavy quilt, but he didn't want to accidentally frighten Xehanort, and the rumors about the two of them were bad enough without a servant catching them sleeping under the same blanket in the same bed. Granted the servants always knocked, but Even didn't want to take the chance. He covered himself with the blanket and tried to relax and go back to sleep. "You had better be grateful that I love you, you know." he grumbled under his breath, and his grumbling turned to an exasperated sigh when Xehanort inched over to him and snuggled close.

He gently smoothed down Xehanort's sleep tousled hair and admitted to himself that it was... nice to know that Xehanort trusted him so much. He doubted that the younger would have curled up so contently next to Aeleus or Dilan. And he looked so peaceful with face relaxed and his body still, a rare sight indeed.

They were _not_ going to be making a habit out of this though.


	3. Earth's Rebirth: Shots and a Snowball

**A/N: This fell victim to one of the many rewrites of Earth's Rebirth. It just didn't flow well with the rest of the story, but I decided that it was far too cute to get rid of, so here you go. **

Finally Even stood up and removed his stethoscope from his ears. "You're doing very well, Terra." he said with a sigh "I think it's time for you to go home." Terra smiled widely. "but, before you can go, one more thing must be done."

Xavier grinned; he knew what Even meant as Vexen walked into the room, carrying a tray full of syringes, each one filled with a clear liquid. Terra's eyes widened as he spotted the needles, and he made a sound of protest as Even turned him over onto his stomach and lifted up his hospital gown.

"Wait -!" he began, but whatever he had about to say was interrupted by a yelp as Even gave him the first shot.

"Really, Terra." Even said as he handed the empty syringe to Vexen and picked up the next one "Did you really think I'd let you leave without your vaccinations?"

Terra yelped a second time. "I hate needles!"

Xavier stepped forward then and began to soothingly run his hand up and down Terra's back. "It's just a few shots, Terra."

"But I hate needles!" A third yelp followed, followed quickly by a fourth. "Enough already!"

"Just one more." Even said evenly, and once the last shot was done, Terra scrambled away from Even and practically leapt into Xavier's arms, to which Xavier only chuckled and held him close.

Even smiled gently at him. "There is no shame in crying when you're upset, Terra."

"I'm not crying!"

Now it was Even's turn to chuckle. "You are physically grown, Terra, and you have years of memories available to you, but the fact remains that you are only three days old. Your emotions are going to be stronger than normal for a little while until they settle down. Just ask, Xavier, he knows."

"Hey, I didn't cry t_hat _much."

Even snorted in disbelief. "Did the meningitis that you suffered leave permanent damage? You cried all the damned time. Anything could and did set you off."

"Well to be fair, I had just woken up in a strange place, surrounded by people I didn't know, with no memories, and oh yeah, I was seriously hurt and in a great deal of pain."

Even disposed of the used syringes and peeled his gloves off. "Ask you if you remembered anything, you'd burst into tears, wake you up from a nightmare, you'd start to bawl, and your physical therapy sessions! Good lords, either myself or Ansem had to be nearby afterwards because we were the only ones that could quiet you down."

"Those things were torture, I tell you, torture."

"And you were a whiny brat."

"I love you too, Even."

"And I love you as well, Xavier, though for the life of me, I can't figure out why. You've been nothing but trouble since Braig carried you into the infirmary all those years ago."

"I knew there was a reason why you kept me around."

"I just wanted to experiment on you."

"And throw conjured snowballs at me. Living in the same castle as an ice elemental was tough."

"I only did that when Ienzo asked me to."

"And I'm sure that you never told him no either."

Even took on a wide eyed, innocent look. "Are you implying that I gave in to my child's every whim?"

"In regards to harassing me, yes."

Xavier noted how Terra and Vexen watched the byplay, until finally, Vexen began to giggle. A second later, Terra also began to laugh quietly, and Xavier and Even shared a smile before Even stepped out, with Vexen following. "Are you ready to get out of here?" Terra nodded eagerly, so Xavier helped him out of his hospital gown and into some regular clothing that he had bought a few days previous. He then slipped a black coat on him before he scooped him out of bed and carried him from the room. Even and Vexen were in the next room, and Even smiled and ruffled Terra's hair before he disappeared through another door that led to the rest of the castle. Once he was gone, Xavier awkwardly shifted Terra to one arm (Which forced Terra to wrap his arms around his neck or risk getting dropped.) and conjured a snowball, which he then handed to Vexen.

"Even seems to have forgotten that I am also an ice elemental." Xavier said in a conspiratorial whisper "It won't melt for a few minutes yet, which should give you just enough time to go stuff it down the back of his shirt. Have fun; don't get caught."

Vexen grinned broadly, green eyes glittering with mischief, and he darted out of the room after Even as Xavier shifted Terra back to both arms, opened a portal and stepped through. Just before the portal closed, he and Terra heard Even's shriek echo down the hallway.


	4. Earth's Rebirth: If You Need Me

**A/N: This was supposed to be the ending for Earth's Rebirth, but I decided that the scene of him walking into the castle worked just fine for that. Here is the original ending for your reading pleasure. **

That night, Terra sat on his bed – _his_ bed in _his_ room! - and couldn't believe that he was finally home. Many of his personal effects had been destroyed when Master Xehanort destroyed the world, and what few remained had been lost when Aqua reshaped the remains, but she and Ventus had done the best they could to make the room look exactly as it had before everything had fallen apart. There was a bookshelf filled with various trinkets and the few books of science fiction and fantasy that he liked to read. There was the rug just like the one that he used to play with his toys on as a child. There was the lamp in the shape of one of the larger worlds, that lit up with hundreds of pinpricks of light that marked the location of a city when the lights were turned off. Everything was accounted for, but the room lacked the lived in feeling that it had once had. He knew that he would soon be able to fix that, but still, the room's lack of warmth only seemed to accentuate its lack of occupant for so long.

A quiet knock at the closed door made him break from his thoughts, and he looked up just as the door opened partially and Xavier poked his head in. "May I come in?"

Terra nodded hastily, and Xavier slipped inside the darkened room, closed the door, and sat down on the bed beside him.

"It's getting late, Terra." he said "So I really need to be going now."

"You're leaving? But -" Terra trailed off for a moment. "I had hoped that you would stay here."

Xavier shook his head slightly. "The Land of Departure was never my home, Terra; it was Xehanort's home a long, long time ago. I have fond memories of it, but Haven's Bridge is my home now. It's where my family is at, and I've no desire to leave them again."

"So this is goodbye then?" He and Xavier had been intertwined together for so long that the thought of them being apart seemed almost... wrong.

"Not forever. You are always welcome to come and visit, even if it's just to sit down and have dinner with the family." An arm came around his shoulders, which prompted him to lean into Xavier's embrace. "I care about you very much, Terra. If you hadn't fought back against the possession, Master Xehanort would have never locked our two hearts away, and I would have never existed. I owe my very life to you, and it's a debt that I can never repay." Xavier's other arm wrapped around him, and Terra sighed softly as he was held like he was the day after his birth. "If you need me for anything, anything at all, just call for me, and I'll be there."

Terra looked at him then. "You don't think that -"

Now it was Xavier's turn to sigh. "Terra, just as I will always be hated by some for things that were beyond my control, there will those that hate you because you resemble someone that caused them grief and pain. I want you to promise me that you will be careful when you're out visiting other worlds, especially Radiant Garden. I don't want anything to happen to you. Promise me, Terra."

Terra shivered and laid his head against Xavier's shoulder. "I promise, Xavier. I promise I'll be careful."

Xavier squeezed him lightly. "Good." A small kiss was placed on his hair, and he felt Xavier let go of him. "I have to go soon. Mama's probably frantic by now."

Terra chuckled, but the chuckle was cut short by a yawn, which made Xavier laugh.

"You've had a long day, Terra. Go to bed and get some sleep." He smiled a knowing smile. "And yes, I'll stay until you fall asleep."

Without a protest, Terra climbed under the blankets, and Xavier tucked him in, and the latter began to hum a simple, soothing tune as Terra closed his eyes and relaxed into the mattress. He felt one of Xavier's hands threading gently through his hair as he began to nod off. Finally, he was safe, he was free.

And he was home.

**A/N 2: FYI, the song that Xavier hums is Terra's Theme from Final Fantasy VI. I was listening to the piano version of it on Youtube while writing this.**


	5. The Price: Family: Believing

**A/N: Did you ever wonder why Even was so quick to return the Wayfinder at the end there?**

Even sat slumped in a chair in the darkened house, tears trickling down his face.

"Oh Xehanort, where are you? Where did you go?" he asked the empty room, but of course there was no answer. There was no one aside from him and Ienzo in the house, and Ienzo was in bed. Aeleus and Dilan were out looking for Xehanort, and Xehanort...

Even let out a choked sob as he thought about Xehanort. He was only six years younger than Even, but Even considered him a son, feelings that had been born during Xehanort's long recovery in the castle infirmary three years previous and that had intensified during the months of protecting him from Braig. He had spent weeks wiping Xehanort's tears away, holding him when he cried, soothing him after his nightmares, and repeatedly assuring him that nothing was his fault. He had given up his home and his apprenticeship to keep Xehanort safe, but now, thanks to his own foolishness, Xehanort was gone.

They were all frustrated with Xehanort's fears; despite months of living on the Destiny Islands, his nightmares had not eased, and his clinginess had relaxed only a tiny bit. They knew he couldn't help it, but it didn't help their mood any after being woke up nearly every night by his terrified screams as Braig stalked his sleep. Even had vented his frustrations to Dilan, thinking that Xehanort was still asleep, but evidently, he hadn't been. It wasn't until he had gone to the bedroom to head to bed himself that he had found Xehanort's bed empty and the window open. The bright moonlight had allowed him to see Xehanort's footprints running down the beach, where they vanished at the water's edge. Either the rising tide had washed them away or...

Even shuddered and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. "I'm so sorry, Xehanort." he whispered "I didn't mean it. Please come home."

He had roused Dilan and Aeleus immediately, and the two of them had gone out and marshaled the neighbors, and a search was currently underway, which left Even to wait at home in case Xehanort came back.

_If _he came back.

Even shook his head, determined not to think that. He had to believe; he had to tell himself that Xehanort was safe and would come home soon.

He shifted uneasily in his chair and felt something jab him in the hip, and he reached into a pocket and grasped Xehanort's Wayfinder. He pulled it out and looked at it with it's blue and white shells and carved sea glass token in the shape of a cresting wave. The cresting wave, he had learned, was the seal of Lord Xehanort, the sea god that Xehanort insisted he was related to.

"You're not even real," Even said to the Wayfinder in his hand "yet you've managed to do so much damage. This is all your fault."

"What is my fault exactly?" said a raspy voice, and Even jumped and looked up to find himself still sitting in his chair, but the house was nowhere in sight. He was on a sandy beach, with dappled moonlight shining down through the palm trees, and just a short distance away was a person sitting on the white sand. The person's face was riddled with scar tissue with a blindfold wrapped around the eyes, and his hair was as white as Xehanort's. Even ignored all of that however; his gaze was focused on what the person was holding in his arms.

"Xehanort!" he cried as he leapt from his chair and ran towards them. He reached out to scoop Xehanort up, but before he could touch him the person held up a hand, and Even came to a sudden stop, unable to move closer. He struggled against whatever it was that was holding him back; Xehanort was so close! "Please, let me hold him!"

The figure held up a hand again. "Even, that is enough."

How did he know his name? Xehanort must have told him. "Please," Even pleaded "Just let me hold him. I've been so worried about him."

"You wouldn't be worried if you hadn't chased him off with cruel words earlier. He overheard everything you said to Dilan, and now he believes that you no longer want him."

"I want him! I do. I love him so much."

"You have a strange way of showing it. Because of you, his previous self was awakened and nearly assumed control of him."

"What?" Even felt fear settled around his heart. "Master Xehanort awoke?"

"He used Xehanort's grief and despair to try and seize control of their shared heart. I stopped him and ensured that he will never be able to awaken again, something that I wouldn't have had to do if it hadn't been for you. You do not deserve him."

Even realized that he was crying as he pushed against the invisible barrier. "I'm so sorry." he whispered as he looked at Xehanort sleeping peacefully in the man's arms "I still love you."

"Do you really? You, among all the others Even, have the ability to hurt him the most. He loves you and trusts you more than the others combined," The raspy voiced lowered, became almost menacing. "and you repay him by telling him that you wish he had never been found."

"I didn't mean it!"

Xehanort whimpered and shifted. "Even." The strange person that was holding him rocked him and cooed to him for a moment, and he quieted. The stranger then looked at Even with a piercing look.

"You are telling me the truth. You do love him very much, and you did not mean to hurt him. For that reason, I will return him to you -" Even reached out eagerly and pushed against the barrier, which prompted the stranger to raise his hand a third time. "- in the morning. Right now, he and I need to speak. You will go home, and you will see him in the morning. Make no mistake, Even. If you hurt him again, intentional or not, I WILL take him from you, and you will never see him again." The air around them grew heavy and oppressive, and the waves crashing down on the sand suddenly grew to double their normal size and intensity. Even felt some kind of power fizzling across his skin, and he shivered.

"Who are you?" he whispered.

"I am Lord Xehanort, and Xehanort is my only remaining descendant."

"But, but gods are not real, and the possession, and -" Even's words stopped when he found himself hoisted into the air and dragged forward until he was face to face with the angry sea god.

"I am very real, and I am very angry with you. Only the fact that your death would devastate Xehanort and Ienzo prevents me from harming you. His heart comes from my last descendant, which makes him a descendant as well. Return home, Even, and wait. I will return Xehanort to you in the morning." Lord Xehanort waved his hand casually, and Even found himself flung across the beach to land hard in his chair. He blinked and found himself back in the living room on the darkened house. "And return his Wayfinder to him! I didn't give it to him so you could take it away!"

Even nodded hastily. "Yes, Lord Xehanort." he said meekly.

The sea god's angry voice fell silent then, and the feeling of power vanished, and Even slumped own in his chair. Had that just really happened?

_Yes! _a raspy voice whispered into his mind, and he jumped and yelped. _And lest you forget... _

There was a long pause, and then Even found himself flooded with intense feelings of anguish and grief. Tears immediately pooled in his eyes, and he began to cry before he could stop himself. _This is what you did to him! Don't do it again!_

"I won't." Even sobbed as he wiped at his streaming eyes "I'll never hurt him again, I swear."

_Good. Now sleep; he'll be returned to you in the morning._

Even sank into the cushions of the chair and immediately sank into a deep sleep.

It was the feel of a hand pressing softly against his chest and the sounds of a very familiar voice crying that woke him later. Even blinked his eyes open to find himself still in the living room chair, and he saw Xehanort kneeling on the floor in front of him, crying with his head on Even's lap.

He gently clasped Xehanort's hand in his own." Xehanort?"

Xehanort looked up at him. "Even?"

"Oh Xehanort. You're home. You're safe." Even slid down to the floor, and he gathered Xehanort to him and held him tight. "I was so worried." Behind him, Even saw Lord Xehanort standing in the middle of the living room, watching them both with a smile and showing none of the anger that he had displayed earlier. _Take care of him for me._

"I will." Even silently mouthed the words, and the sea god smiled wider and then simply vanished before his eyes.

Later, after he tucked Xehanort into bed for some much needed sleep, Even pulled the Wayfinder out of his pocket. As he held it in his hands, he could feel the power that surrounded it, and he suddenly knew that it was that power that had finally calmed Xehanort's nightmares. He slipped the cord around Xehanort's neck and sat beside him as he fell asleep, grateful to Lord Xehanort for helping Xehanort when the rest of them couldn't.

"Thank you." he whispered to the silent room, and he swore he heard a equally quiet _You're welcome. _ coming in on the sea breeze blowing through the open window.


	6. Completion: Coming Home

**A/N: I thought about having this in Completion, but decided that it would cheapen things too much.**

"I'm sorry." Even whispered as he laid his hand over where the ashes and bones were "I'm sorry that, now that you're gone, I just now came back here for you I'm sorry that I didn't care for you. I'm sorry that I was so cruel to you. I'm so sorry, and I wish I could bring you all back, but while I can recreate a body perfectly, I cannot recreate your hearts and souls. Have you gone on, to whatever afterlife awaits? Are you living new lives even now? Please don't be trapped here, and if you are, please go on. Don't stay here, trapped in misery and anger." Taking a deep breath, he reached out with his senses and felt... a heart, coming slowly towards him. He opened his eyes and held up his cupped hands just as a disembodied heart came down to gently rest in them. Sadness and fear engulfed him as he held it.

_Master?_ whispered a voice that sounded so much like his own, and he knew immediately who it was.

"No. 8?"

_Oh, Master, you came back. You came back for me._

Even smiled weakly as tears began to track down his face. "Of course I came back for you."

_I'm sorry, Master. I tried to protect the others, but nothing I did seemed to stop him. Please don't be angry with me._

"No, I'm not angry with you, 8. You did the best you could, and that's all I could ask of you."

_They all left me, and I tried to get them to stay and wait for you, but all but one vanished into the light. I wanted to go too, but I waited here instead for you. Did I do right?_

"You did fine, No. 8. I love you, and I'm here with you now."

_You... love me?_

"I do. I have my heart back, and I can feel for you what I couldn't before."

_I love you too, Master. I was so sad when you died, and I tried to keep going, but it was so hard, and it hurt so much. _

"I know, child, I know. I have you now, and I'm going to take you home with me." He reached out and touched his face to the heart in his hands as happiness and joy flowed from it.

_No. 23 stayed too, but when you took No. 47 out of here, he said he had no reason to stay any longer, and he vanished into the light. I had hoped that you would come back soon take me home too._

Even smiled and kissed No. 8's heart, and a happy laugh sounded in his mind. "I am going to carry you within my own heart, and I want you to sleep. When you wake up, I promise that I'll be there waiting for you. Do you understand?"

_Yes, Master. _

"That's my good boy." Even smiled through his tears, and he gently clasped his hands to his chest and felt No. 8 enter his heart and settle in. "Now go to sleep."

_Goodnight, Master._

"Goodnight, child." No. 8's heart fell silent then, and Even felt his heart go to sleep. He smiled and laid his hand over where the heart was resting within his own, and then he gathered up what he had come for and returned home, where he said nothing to anyone about finding No. 8's heart. The time wasn't right.

**OOOOOO**

As much as he wanted to have No. 8 back with him as soon as possible, Even knew that he didn't have what he needed to create another Replica, and since he was on thin ice with Master Ansem, running across the worlds looking for the equipment wasn't the best idea. So it wasn't until three years later that he was able to keep his promise. He spent the week after Terra's birth cleaning and readying the equipment, and then he took his own DNA and data and conceived a new Replica. Over the next month, he and Vexen watched it grow, and when it was ready, he reached out with his own heart and gently prodded No. 8 awake.

_Master? _came a sleepy voice, and Even smiled.

"It's time to wake up." he said gently "Are you ready to be reborn?"

_Yes, master! _No. 8 responded eagerly _Yes, I'm ready!_

Even smiled again at the child's eagerness. "Then come on out." He held his hands up, and he felt a tugging sensation followed by the sight of a heart coming to rest in his hands once more. He held it up to eye level. "Your new home is waiting. It's sedated right now, but it's ready for you and will be born in a few more days. Go now."

No. 8 laughed in pure joy and sped over to the glass tube containing the new Replica. Like Terra had six weeks before, the body glowed softly for a minute, and then Even and Vexen could see the heart within, resting.

"Daddy?" Vexen said quietly, and Even turned to look at him. The child normally just called him "Dad" these days, but he fell back to calling him "Daddy" whenever he was upset, sick, or feeling insecure about something.

"Hmmm?"

"Was No. 23 there too?"

"No, Ewen -" Vexen had picked the name out of a book of names that the original Vexen had found on one of the larger worlds years ago. "- was the only one there." Even pulled Vexen to him and held him tight for a moment. "He did tell me that No. 23 had been there, and that he had stayed to watch over you. When I brought you home, he vanished into the light because he knew that I would take care of you and keep you safe." Vexen gave him a tearful smile, and Even held him for a bit longer before letting him go. "Now how about we gather the things Ewen's going to need when he's born, shall we?"

"May I help take care of him?"

"Of course you may. Now, what all do you think he'll need?"

"Ummmm," Vexen thought for a second. "Clothes?"

"Yes, he'll need clothes to wear, though he'll probably just wear a hospital gown with socks and a diaper for the first few days, like you, Terra, and the others did. What else?"

"He'll have to be fed right after he's born, right? So we'll need something to feed him. Will we have to bottle feed him or spoon feed him?"

"Probably spoon feed him, since he already knows how to eat, which is why we didn't have to feed Terra with a bottle. Is there anything else you can think of?"

"He'll need to be kept warm, so we'll need to get him some blankets." Vexen paused as something seemed to occur to him, and then he smiled widely. "I'll give him his blanket back."

"Are you sure, little one? He did give that to you."

"But he's a baby now, so he'll need it more than I do. He can have it."

Even smiled again and kissed the top of Vexen's head. "I'm proud of you, Vexen. That was a very mature decision. Now let's get those things together."

"Right."

**OOOOOO**

Six days later, Even found himself lost in memories of No. 8's birth all those years ago as he began to drain the fluid from the tank. Once the fluid was gone, he and Vexen opened it and pulled Ewen out. Even spanked him to get him breathing, and once he was crying they laid him down on a table and tied off and cut his umbilical cord. They then dried him off and dressed him before wrapping him in his blanket. Even then gathered him up, sat down in a chair, held him on his lap and cooed to him, while Vexen went to fetch a bowlful of the starting formula that the original Vexen had come up with to feed to the newborn Replicas.

Even cradled the crying child in his arms and rocked him and searched for any hint of recognition in the teary green eyes. Terra had recognized Xavier within an hour of his birth, so he was hopeful that Ewen would do the same. To his disappointment, Ewen only cried and showed no signs that he knew who Even was by the time Vexen returned.

His cries quieted as Vexen spoon fed him, and once the bowl was empty, he settled into Even's arms and went to sleep. Even carefully stood up, carried him into the small bedroom, and gently laid him down in the same bed that Terra had slept in. He whimpered softly as he settled down, and Even spent several minutes just watching him sleep before he left the room to start on the cleanup.

**OOOOOO**

That night, Even was awakened from where he had fallen asleep in the chair beside Ewen's bed by soft crying. A quick glance to his left showed that Vexen was sound asleep in the room's second bed, so he looked to his right to see Ewen shifting in his own bed and crying.

"What's wrong, little one?" Even asked quietly as he stood up and gathered the child to him.

"Ma... master." Ewen sobbed, and Even felt relief flood his heart that the child recognized him.

"I'm here with you, child. It's alright now. You're home safe with me and Vexen."

"Master." Ewen cried again, and Even rocked him and stroked his hair, as it dawned on him that he was going to have to break this child of calling him master as well. Hopefully, since he and No. 8 had once been very close, it would be easier to do. He was also going to have to get him used to Ansem's presence. Vexen still did not like Ansem at all, but he acknowledged that the man was different than he had been before, and the two of them could be in the same room without Vexen having a panic attack.

Even laid Ewen down and then he took his boots and lab coat off and climbed into the bed and laid down beside him. Ewen snuggled close to him, and he began to quiet as Even tucked the blankets around him and wrapped his arms around him.

"Go back to sleep, Ewen." Even said softly. "I'm here."

"Master." the child said sleepily, and his green eyes opened and looked directly at Even. "Love... you."

Even smiled and planted a soft kiss on Ewen's forehead. "I love you too, little one. Now, it's time to go back to sleep. You have your whole life waiting for you."

Ewen tucked his head under Even's chin and yawned, and then he fell asleep, wrapped securely in Even's arms.

**OOOOOO**

**A/N 2: Believe it or not, Even and Evan are two completely different names with different meanings. Evan is the Welsh version of John and means "The lord is gracious.". Even is a variation of the Scandinavian name "Eivind" meaning "happy warrior", which in my opinion does not fit KH Even at all. I've read that Even is also a variant spelling of Evan, but it's one I have yet to definitely see, since KH is the only time I have seen that name, and the games do not state what name it is exactly. Depending on where you look, Ewen is either a variation of Evan or a variation of the Irish name "Eoghan" which means "born of the yew". See, now you can say that you've learned something today. **


	7. The Price: Pensieve

**A/N: So this was born of a Skype chat between myself and Lita of the Dancing Flames. We were talking about The Price, and she inadvertently mashed Discovery and Rejection together. That spawned an idea in which Ansem is a jerk to Xehanort and then later realizes his mistake, (I'll write that one sooner or later.) and I was wondering what would make him realize his mistake, and Lita replied: "I would say pensieve, but that's Harry Potter." I then typed out the first five sentences of this right there in Skype.**

Even let him up, and Ansem gasped and sputtered for a moment. Once he'd caught his breath, the blond asked him:

"Have you figured it out yet?"

"Even, what is the meaning of this!" Ansem spat as he tried to push Even's hand off the back of his neck.

Even shook his head, "Apparently not." and shoved him back under. He held the old man down under the silvery liquid a bit longer this time before letting him up. Ansem's hands and arms flailed about, trying to get a hold of him, he supposed, but he was easily able to step away without relinquishing his grip on the back of his neck.

When he next allowed Ansem to raise his head, the anger in his eyes had dimmed a bit, but that didn't stop him from practically snarling at his Senior Apprentice: "I'll throw you out of the castle if you do not cease this -" That was as far as he got as Even shoved him back into stone bowl on the desk. As he held him under the silvery strands, he took a moment to admire the bowl itself – a pensieve the dark haired teenager had called it. The rough hewn stone bowl was etched with several strange looking figures that the teenager had called runes, and those runes glowed with their own faint light. As appearances go, it wasn't much to look at, but as soon as it's function had been explained to him, Even had realized immediately how he could put it to use. The scientific value of such an object was immeasurable, but first, he wanted to use it to right a terrible wrong.

It had taken a bit to get Xehanort to focus on the memories he needed – doing so had left him a sobbing mess – but soon the bowl was full and ready for its intended victim. Even had soothed Xehanort to sleep, and after leaving him under Aeleus' watchful eye, he had taken the pensieve to Ansem's office. He had set the bowl down on the desk in front of Ansem, who had stood up from his chair to get a better look at the strange object. Even had been told that simply touching the memory strands would drag one into them, but he had also been told that dunking the person's head in also worked with the added bonus of not being able to leave the pensieve until the person holding them down let go. Once Ansem had been distracted by the pensieve, it had been simple to grab him by the back of his neck and shove him down into the memories that were swirling within.

Even glanced at his watch and realized that he had been holding Ansem under for over ten minutes, so he let him up.

The man came up spitting and swearing - "Xehanort is just a whore -!" - so Even shoved him back under again.

This time he held him under for nearly 20 minutes, and when he let him back up, most of Ansem's anger seemed to have drained away, but he was still being stubborn about it. "Xehanort could have said no." And down he went a fifth time. For someone who was said to be so wise, Ansem apparently was quite the idiot when dealing with the obvious.

Even sighed and checked his watch. With the assistance of the offworld boy that had given him the pensieve, he had put hours of Xehanort's memories in, so he could keep Ansem dunked all night if he needed to. Yet, as he let Ansem up only to hear "It takes two people to have sex, Even." which resulted in Ansem's head going right back into the bowl, he realized that doing so would get tiring quickly.

Still, it needed to be done, and since Even had placed copies of practically every sexual encounter that Xehanort had had with Braig in the bowl, hopefully the man would get the picture sooner or later. And there were a lot of encounters, everything from the agreement – information in exchange for sex – to that night they had been caught in bed together, and to the time that led to Even finding Xehanort curled up in his bed, crying and bleeding. He had even thrown in Ansem's rejection, in the hopes that seeing it from Xehanort's eyes would drive home how much pain it had caused.

He held Ansem's head down in Xehanort's memories for over an hour before he let him up, and when Ansem stood upright and looked at him, the man's eyes looked haunted and were red and puffy like he'd been crying for hours. "I'm sorry, Even. I am so sorry." He then burst into tears and bawled like Xehanort had so many times.

Even quietly stood by and watched the man cry, and once he had began to calm down, he held out a handkerchief and said softly; "I'm not the one you need to apologize to."

Ansem took the handkerchief and wiped at his streaming eyes and dripping nose. "Yes, yes, you're right of course, but... how can he ever accept any apology after the way I've treated him?"

"You won't find out until you ask, and there's no time like the present."

Ansem glanced over at the wall clock. "But it is so late. I'm sure that he's asleep now," Even reached for his neck again, which caused him to jump back and add hastily: "but I'm sure he won't mind being woken up for a long overdue apology."

"You know where he is then, so I suggest that you get moving." Ansem nodded and left the room just below a run, while Even took a few minutes to press the rune of the side of the pensieve that caused a small shield to shimmer into being over the top of the bowl. This was to prevent the memories within from spilling out, which would then cause them to rush back to their origin – Xehanort – if he was close enough. And that, Even had been firmly warned, would not be good at all.

Once the shield was in place, Even carefully picked up the bowl and walked out of the office, heading back to his rooms and back to Xehanort.


End file.
